


What's in a Name?

by PaperHatCollection



Category: Villainous (Cartoon)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-20
Updated: 2017-12-26
Packaged: 2019-02-17 10:37:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13075098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PaperHatCollection/pseuds/PaperHatCollection
Summary: Dr. Slug has been working for White Hat for a long time. And now White Hat is bringing in his next pet project; Dr. Flug Slys. And Slug has to work with him. Great. Just great.





	1. Chapter 1

It was a dark and stormy night. Rain beat against the stain glass windows lining the manor like a thousand tiny hammers, forming rivers down the walls and drains to puddle around the garden and brick pathways. The moonlight was blotted out by heavy stormclouds, the darkness parting for only a handful of moments when lightning cracked across the sky and illuminated the shadows cast by the rainfall. 

Why, Slug thought with a stab of annoyance, did White Hat have to be so fucking  _ dramatic _ when he kidnapped someone? They couldn’t have gone this morning when it was a bright, sunny day.  _ Noooooo _ , they had struck in the middle of a  _ storm _ for no reason other than White Hat seemed to think the mood was  _ befitting  _ such an act.

Needless to say, Slugs mood was as gloomy as the weather. As if it wasn’t bad enough his ego had taken a huge blow across the many failed attempts it had taken to hack Black Hat’s security system (it had  _ laughed _ at him), or his failure in capturing Demencia (fighting her was like wrestling an eel), now he was expected to  _ share _ his lab with Flug whilst he was being ‘redeemed’. Frankly, Slug didn’t like the idea of others touching stuff. 

“It’s not like he could ever  _ replace  _ you, I promise.” White Hat said, holding Slugs hands close to his chest, rubbing the top of them soothingly. “You’ll always be my smart little bag boy~ But don’t you think Flug deserves the same chance of redemption that you got?”

“It’s not the same.” Slug muttered under his breath. 

White Hat didn’t even blink. “Oh, come now, don’t get like that. You haven't even given Flug a chance.” he said, getting closer and rubbing the side of Slugs bagged head. “Who knows, maybe you two will even get along. Like two bagged peas in a pod.”

Leaning even closer, White Hat smiled in that stupid way he did whenever he was trying to get lovey dovey. “But if you want, I could always find ways to make up for making you share your lab with someone~” White Hat offered.

Slug shrugged, leaning closer. “It had better be good.” he muttered, reaching up to push up his bag. He didn’t get far before a loud  **_BANG_ **  interrupted them, causing Slug to jerk back out of reflex. His attention turned towards the hallway. That had sounded a lot like a chair being knocked over. 

White Hat pulled back with a sigh. “That would be Flug- he must have knocked himself over trying to free himself.” he guessed, casting a glance towards the room. “One moment Slug, I need to make sure he didn’t hurt himself.”

“Free himse- did you tie him to a chair?” Slug asked, surprised. He knew Flugs wrists were bound, but he’d have thought White would have just locked him up in a room. Then again, Flug was smart enough to figure out how to escape one room, even if the door was enchanted… 

Rather then answer, White Hat slipped out of the living room and into the hall. Slug sighed to himself, dusting off his lab coat. He could probably just ditch White and head down to his lab to bury himself in work, Flug proof a few things, but… something felt off. Wrong. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but…

He glanced up at the door White Hat had gone through, thinking to himself for a few moments. Finally shrugging to himself, he moved forward and left the room, sneaking down the hall to where Flug had been stored. The door was open a crack, and he could hear voices from inside. 

Approaching the door, Slug pushed it open a few inches more so he could slip into the room unnoticed. A heavy wooden chair was laying sideways on the ground, burned ropes laying fizzling on the ground. Flug himself was pressed against the backwall, a palm sized ray gun in his hands and pointed right at White Hat. Flug was shaking. Slug was reminded of a mouse being cornered by a cat. 

White Hat moved forward suddenly, causing Flug to yelp and fire his weapon at the demon. White Hat shapeshifted his body to dodge the blast, reforming directly in front of Flug. 

“Oh, stop that.” White Hat grabbed the gun from Flugs hand, chucking it over his shoulder. “Trust me, Slug already tried all sorts of weapons on me in the past. None of them worked.”

Tentacles emerged from White Hat’s back, wrapping around Flugs arms and chest, pinning him to the back wall. White Hat lifted a hand, stroking the side of Flugs bag. “Don’t worry.” White Hat whispered, his voice low and smooth. Slug almost couldn’t hear him. “When I’m done with you, you won’t even  _ remember _ Black Hat anymore.”

He ran his hands down to the bottom of Flugs bag, lifting it for-  _ a kiss _ , Vaskur was sure, but he couldn’t quite say why. 

Flug struggled like a mouse in a bear trap, kicking and thrashing in White Hats hold. Even with his goggles on, Slug could tell he was looking around randomly, searching for anything that could help him out of White Hat’s grip. He could feel Flugs gaze land on him, the others head turning towards the doorway. Slug could almost hear Flug take in a breath-

“ _ Vaskur _ !” 

Everything ground to a halt just like that. Slug felt like he was swaying- the rain outside might as well have been an ocean, tossing the mansion back and forth on an ocean of puddles. He was going to be sick- and he never got sick, ever. 

“Vaskur!” Flug gasped out a second time, still staring right at Slug. “Help me, please!”

Slug stared at Flug- but he wasn’t really staring. The word- the sound, it echoed in his mind, dug around in dusty old memories and pulled out things he didn’t know he didn’t remember. It was all too much-too soon- a face, a name-

“Vaskur! Flug!” Black Hat snapped, bursting through the doors of their shared lab. 

Vaskur groaned under his breath, setting down his tools before he stretched upwards, turning his chair around to face the doorway. Flug was less lucky- he’d dropped a armfull of paperwork on the floor was was currently scrambling to recollect the papers. 

“Is the custom done?” Black Hat asked, stepping into the room. Vaskur resisted the urge to sigh again- He’d already know the answer to that question if he’d bothered to read any of the paperwork they’d sent to his desk. 505 would have certainly gotten it there by now- who knows, maybe Demencia got in the way again. 

“O-Of course, sir.” Flug said, which was alot better than what Vaskur was going to say. “And everything's all packed up and ready to go. Would you like a rundown on operating it?” he asked, a slight plea to his voice. It was… frustrating when Black Hat waited until presenting their devices before demanding to know how to use them. And he would need to know how to use it if he was going to-

“No need.” Black Hat folded his arms behind his back, suddenly a lot more composed. “You’ll be joining me- both of you. It has been too long since I’ve shown off my minions.” 

Well, there went Vaskurs plans for the night. And it wasn’t much use to try and convince Black Hat that one of them could go and the other could stay behind and keep working on inventions, he considered the two of them a ‘set’. Besides, with his luck and sadistic tendencies, he’d be the one Black Hat brought with him.

“When do we leave?” Vaskur asked. 

“20 minutes. Main lobby.” Black Hat glanced between the two of them. “ _ Do not _ be late.” he warned, before turning and exiting the lab as quickly as he had come. Yeah, as if  _ Black Hat _ wasn’t the one who always left everyone waiting. Slug groaned as he stood, stretching out. 

“I’m going to change my lab coat.” Vaskur said, tossing the words to Flug. He might as well looked  _ slightly _ presentable and less oil-stained, and considering his appearance was a bag and goggles covering his face, and a lab coat that covered his entire body and neck, there wasn’t much he needed to do to look cleaned up. Oh right, his gloves, he should change those too. 

“Alright, I’ve just got to-” Flug paused, reorganizing the papers in his hands. “Yeah, I’ve got to file these. I’ll meet you downstairs with the invention.”

Vaskur nodded, standing too fast and immediately regretting it when his legs cramped under him. He groaned and leaned on his desk for a moment while he woke up the muscles in his legs. Desk work could be such a pain in the ass sometimes. Forget the fact he probably should have gotten up and stretched two hours ago. Once he could finally move he began the trek back to his room. Man, they needed an elevator in here.

He dumped his current clothing on the floor, getting something clean from his closet. How 505 got the stains out of his lab coats, he’d never know. After he was presetable, Vaskur flopped onto his bed and opened up an app game on his phone. There wasn’t much reason in hurrying, was there?

25 minutes later, Vaskur made his way to the main lobby, where Flug was sitting on the case with the weapon in it, playing on his phone. Black Hat was nowhere to be seen. Another five moments later, a puff of smoke erupted in the middle of the room to reveal Black Hat in a fancy new suit. He still looked like a monster, but whatever made him feel more civilized. 

“Good, you’re both here.” Black Hat snapped his fingers, a door snapping a pair of interdimensional doors into existence. Vaskur had seen that trick only a handful of times- they connected any two spots by briefly passing through another dimension. But as far as a human was concerned, it just created a portal straight from one spot to another. Handy when they were running late and didn’t have time to travel in style. “Let's not waste anymore time.”

Turning on a heel, Black Hat threw open the doors, sweeping into the halls of the villain convention. Vaskur wondered if he was even capable of entering a room like a normal person, or if he always had to be so fucking  _ dramatic _ about everything. And of course he and Flug followed behind him like ‘good little minions’,  _ ugh _ , each of them side by side. Behind them, the doors closed and would return to normal, everyday doors. 

Vaskur glanced at Flug, noting he was carrying the case that had the weapons in it, while he himself folded his arms behind his back. He’d been told it made him look intimidating. 

Common villains gawked at Black Hat as he passed, avoiding his path as if just touching him would cause them to- actually, bumping into Black Hat  _ would _ result in their death. 

Plus, he felt a touch of pride whenever he heard someone mentioning him and Flug in passing. Working with Black Hat certainly had its perks, and the fame was somewhere around the fifth best part. He didn’t have long to eavesdrop, however, since they were led straight to the meeting with their newest client.

“Black Hat.” the villain smiled, revealing teeth nearly as yellow as his eyes. But Vaskur did give him they looked free of cavities or decay, and given his red skin the coloring might have more to do with biology then a lack of dental plan. “My pleasure- I’m a  _ real _ fan.” 

“Thrax.” Black Hat spoke, reaching out a hand and shaking the other villains hand. “Glad to finally make your acquaintance- I’ve been following your plans for some time now. I’m a fan of your toxins.”

“Oh please, you flatter me~” Thrax waved his clawed hand dismissively, the other going to his collarbone. “Besides, what I’ve accomplished so far is  _ nothing _ compared to what I’ll be able to do with the help of  _ your _ company.” he all but purred. His eyes drifted over to Flug as his grin grew on his face. 

Thrax followed back, tapping a suitcase sitting on a table behind him. “The payments all here- just as promised.”

Black Hat stepped forward, flicking open the case and pulling out a wad of money. Had it been fake Black would have already torn it all to shreds. He put it back in the case, closing it and snapping his fingers, gesturing Flug closer. 

Flug stepped forward with the case, opening it to revel the specialty gauntlet they’d created for Thrax. Black Hat removed it from the box, handing it over to Thrax who immediately put it on, his natural toxins causing the weapon to power up.

“Perfect- just as you promised.” Thrax said, forming a toxic ball of fumes as he tossed it up and down in his hand. The ball sized loudly when it made contact with the air, causing both Vaskur and Flug to step back, even if Black Hat’s protection prevented them from being poisoned. But now that his back was nearly flush with the door, Vaskur realized just how noisy things were outside the room. Normally these conventions were pretty loud, so he was used to filtering it out, but now that he was listening to it, it sounded-

An explosion sounded nearby, followed by louder yelling. Vaskur shared a look with Flug. 

“What this time?” Black Hat snapped, turning around. His eye glowed at he stared at the wall before suddenly snarling. “Why must a hero  _ always _ attack one of these events? Such a nuisance. Flug, remind me to remind you to make a product for this.” 

“Yes sir.” Flug said. 

Vaskur stepped aside so Black Hat could open the door, and sure enough, a handful of heroes were flying around and causing trouble. Just great. Black Hat snapped his fingers, the case of money disappearing in a puff of smoke 

“Our business here is done, Thrax. I assume you agree?” Black Hat asked, thought it wasn’t really a question so much as a demand. Either way, Thrax just shrugged. 

“Fine by me.” Thrax said, stepping back as his bod melted into red goop, the weapon reading the shifts in his body and changing with him. He disappeared down a drain in the back of the room which- that was pretty gross. 

Black Hat wasted no time in launching himself at the heroes, who pretty much all turned their attention to him. While the (soon to be short lived) battle raged above them, Flug and Vaskur shared a knowing look before taking off together. 

The plan was to get away. Flug had been a little ahead of him, so he probably hadn’t seen him trip, hadn’t heard over the battle. It wasn’t even his fault- something had wrapped around his ankle. Vaskurs eyes dropped down to what looked like white rope, then followed it up to a white and gold version of his boss. 

White Hat smiled, and-

Vaskur was moving forward before he was even aware of where he was. 

He grabbed White Hat’s shoulder, yanking him away from Flug’s and breaking his grip as his brothers words were only just echoing in the room, not giving White Hat a chance to realize what had happened. He then followed it by pulling back and smashing his fist into the monocled side of White’s face. It wouldn’t do any  _ real _ damage, but when caught unprepared it would throw White off for a few moments. 

“Stay  _ away _ from him.” Vaskur growled, stepping in front of Flug protectively. He glared daggers at White Hat as the demon recovered, standing and facing away from the two as he rubbed the side of his face, reforming his monocle. Vaskur took the opportunity to hit ‘send’ on his phone during the last few moments he had before White looked back at them, sliding his phone into his pocket. 

“Slug,” White Hat looked at him with a frown tugging at his lips, turning his head slightly to the side. “Is something wrong?” he asked, voice soft and warm. 

“My name,” Vaskur growled, every syllable stressed thin. “Is  _ Vaskur Skip _ . Not  _ Slug _ , not  _ Slugger _ , not your  _ Slug bug _ .”

“Oh. I see.” White Hat shook his head, clasping his hands gently behind his back. “Well, I can’t say I didn’t see this sort of risk coming. I was going to need to erase your memory a second time anyways, you would have tipped Flug off to his past otherwise.” 

Vaskur sucking in a breath, trying to keep himself calm despite the fact he was  _ boiling _ in rage at this monster that had  _ stolen _ him like he was some kind of  _ pet _ to add to his collection of ‘people I took from my brother’. “Fuck you.” 

“ _ Language _ .” White Hat tsked. 

“Go eat a dick.” Vaskur snarled. White Hat just tsked and shook his head. 

“Oh, and you were doing so well. Now I’ll have to teach you to be a hero all over- ah, well, hopefully Flug will be a good influence on you this time.” White Hat said with a sigh. He stepped forward, reaching out his tentacles as if to grab them. 

A sound a lot like something crashing through a wall broke through the manor. It happened again, closer this time, before getting even closer the next. And then Black Hat burst through the wall, claws and teeth bared. 

“White Hat,” Black Hat spit out. “Step away from  _ my _ scientists.” he demanded, then didn’t even wait to grab White Hat with a tentacle and slam him into the far wall. 

“Brother,” White Hat tilted his head. “Do you really need  _ two _ ?”

“Yes!” Black Hat snapped. 

“Okay…” White Hat burst free, jumping at Black Hat with his own claws, almost too fast for the human eye to keep up with. The two disappeared into the hole Black Hat had made, and the two humans made it in time to see the two demons attacking each other like rabid dogs.

Frankly, seeing them fight was enough to turn any mortal mad, so they both fled back into the room. Still, Vaskur caught a glimpse of Black Hat tearing off White’s head (which didn’t kill him, unfortunately) and smirked to himself. 

A few minutes later, Black Hat walked in grumbling, carrying a struggling White Hat by his neck. To bad he’d gotten his head back. Black Hat dropped White to the ground, ignoring him and walking back to his two minions and grabbing their arms. 

“This time, you’re  _ both _ getting tracking devices, not just Demencia.” Black Hat ordered. 

“Yes sir.” Flug and Vaskur said. 

 


	2. Happy Holidayss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Last minute gift shopping? Try last minute fic writing.

Vaskur glanced at the elevator camera out of the corner of his eye, being careful not to move his head so as to keep the action hidden by his goggles. It wouldn’t be like him to  _ care _ that he was being watched- or, to be more specific, for  _ Slug _ to care that he was being watched. Just thinking of that name sent a spike of anger through the pit of his stomach, causing him to grip the suitcase handle tightly suddenly. He forced his hand to relax, drumming his fingers against the handle as to appear bored. 

While normal elevator music was bad enough, this discount elevator Christmas music was getting on his nerves. It was some remix of Deck the Halls, almost like the stuff Demencia blasted through the house all through the holiday season. He couldn’t tell you how sick he was of Christmas music at this point. Frankly, he’d been shocked at first that Black Hat celebrated, or even allowed anyone to celebrate the holiday… until he stepped back and noted the corporate greed, consumerism, and fights the holiday spurred. Even the heroes only celebrated to sell toys of themselves, though they had eventually started decorating their halls for other December holidays from different cultures. 

After what seemed like an eternity trapped in his own thoughts, the elevator doors opened and granted him access to the Hero Association Headquarters with a small beep. Vaskur stepped out as calmly as he would any other day, walking towards the receptionist. 

“Morning, Dr. Slug. Merry Christmas.” Todd said, smiling at him as he closed something on his computer. His fingers were resting on the wasd keys for a moment before he moved them to grab a visitor pass from the bin. “Whatcha got there?” he asked, nodding towards the suitcase in Vaskurs hands. 

“Christmas tree.” Vaskur said. “A new model from our company.” he took the pass offered by Todd, clipping it to the high collar of his lab coat. Despite working so closely with White Hat for so long, he was still considered ‘hired help’ in the books. At least having worked with such a high ranking hero allowed him to sweep right past the sign in process. 

“White Hat already came in earlier.” Todd says, as if Vaskur would be surprised. “He’s in the main hall with everyone else. Sounds like their having quite the party today- I heard their even going to have a special guest.” 

He nodded, hardly paying attention to whatever he was saying. It wouldn’t really matter, not after tonight. In fact, he was eager to get started. “Am I allowed to just walk in?” he asked, already knowing the answer. Really, it was code for ‘shut up and let me go’, but knowing Todd, he wouldn’t even think of that. 

In fact, Todd beamed at him. “Sure, go right ahead.” 

Nodding, Vaskur walked around the desk and down the hall leading into the main hall, music and chatter muffled by the steal doors leading in. Tinsel was everywhere. He pushed open the door and stepped inside, met with the sight of heroes scattered around the room, chattering amongst themselves like highschool chums. The hall was densely packed with Christmas decorations, and presents were laid under the statues of the country's finest heroes, which were decorated like trees. A few sets of eyes darted to him, only to be matched with smiles before their owners turned their attention back to whatever they were looking at before. He’d been unknown when he worked with Black Hat, and he’d worked with White Hat for a long time, so trust was high. Granted, a few rumors flew around that he was related to the other bag wearing scientist that worked for Black Hat- not that he’d ever confirmed they were twins. Or remembered himself. 

A group of scientists were waving at him from near the punch bowl, so he figured he’d make his way over. He’d worked with most of them over the years, and would probably consider them the closest thing he had to friends. He almost felt bad about what was about to happen. 

“Slug!” Dr. Brown smiled at him. “We didn’t think you were going to show up- don’t you normally stay home for the holidays?” she said, her voice raising near the end to make it a question. Vaskur shrugged in response. 

“Have to show off the latest project. Instant Christmas tree- with a touch of home security.” he explained, patting the side of his case. “It’ll be quite the sight…”

“I’d imagine.” Dr. Martin beamed as he slapped him on the back. “Do you need to wait for an announcement from your boss, or can you go ahead and show us?” he asked. 

That was a good question. Vaskur turned his attention to where the White-clad Hat was chatting with some heroes, sipping from a glass with a strange green liquid in it. Poison, probably. His boss never could handle hero talk without a deep drink. For a moment their eyes locked, and the other nodded at him. Well, that was the signal to setup. 

He stepped more towards the middle of the room, setting the case on the ground and kicking it outward. It flew open, the green bristles and metal pipes flying outward as a tree seemed to pop right out of the case, round ornaments and tinsel popping out of hidden compartments to self-decorate. It immediately caught the attention of the heroes in the room, several moving closer to look it over while a few flyers darted around about it like bees. 

“Nice- but a little plain. You could use some more ornaments other than orbs.” Captain Strongarm suggested, reaching a hand towards a red ball and turning it around in his hand. “But I like it.”

“Oh, good.” Hat’s lips stretched up in an strained smile. “It’s the latest in - uh, White Hat Inc. holiday decorations.” He explained with a flourish towards the tree. “A decoration and a defense system.” he added with a sip of his drink. 

“Defense?” Strongarm stepped back in confusion. “What is it going to do, fall on intruders?” 

Hat glanced at Vaskur, who nodded and pulled a tablet out of his coat. Turning it on and opening the right app, he powered up the Hatbot-Sentinel. The tree broke apart as the robot hidden underneath reorganized itself, limbs unwinding around its body as it straitened to its full height. The needle-like leaves that had given it the illusion of an evergreen retracted as the ornaments and tinsel was stored back in its body. 

Strongarm whistled. “Impressive, and fairly intimidating. A little much for a heroes home though.”

“Oh, I’m sure we can find a use for it.” Hat said, with a grin that was too large and too sharp. 

What happened next happened so suddenly that Vaskur didn’t understand it until he was able to check the Hatbot-Sentinel’s security cameras later. Blackout, a hero known for causing EMP-like bursts that temporarily canceled out superpowers, was stumbling around drunk. Drawn closer by the sudden Christmas tree appearing out of nowhere, and it’s sudden transformation, Blackout was attempting to make his way closer when he tripped on the cape of his costume, banging his head on a table and blacking out. However, on some drunken reflex, his power blasted through the room for a brief moment, sending most heroes to the floor and forcing Black Hat to return to his normal coloring. 

There was a split second of confusion before everyone's powers came back on. 

“Black Hat! Stop him!” Strongarm cried, moments before the Hatbot-Sentinel slammed his head into the floor as Vaskur increased it’s setting to ‘Fanfic writer’. The heros who hadn’t jumped back in fear were already racing to air Strongarm, only to be caught in surprise as metal arms burst out of one of the largest presents sitting under the statues, wrapping around the heroes and flinging them back into the room as Cambot emerged from the wrapping. 

Hatbot-Sentinel leaped into the fray as it chucked heroes out of it’s way, seeking only to cause mayhem with its setting on ‘Line Art & Clean Up’. For the most part, heroes were just trying to escape before Black Hat killed them. On that subject, Black Hat was standing exactly where he had been before the fight broke out, calmly drinking from his glass. 

“Are we ready yet, Vaskur?” Black Hat asked. Vaskur nodded at him as Cambot set itself up and gave the thumbs up, mics at the ready. Caskur counted down on his fingers as Cambot began filming. 

“Greetings, to the most  _ despicable _ Scrooges this Holiday.” Black Hat said with a flourish, a hero flying into a table behind him. “The Black Hat Organization is proud to present a live demo of our newest product at work dispensing of several annoying heroes in their own base.” 

Cambot panned over to where the Hatbot was tossing heroes around like dolls. Vaskur turned down the settings slightly to Shipping Fees so that the battle would at least go on long enough for them to get some footage. Black Hat stepped closer so that he was in the frame once more. “As you can see, this years model is more than suited to take on even the most pesky of team ups, negating much of modern hero strategy.”

Vaskur was busy monitoring both the footage feed from Cambot and Hatbot’s system levels, so he couldn’t say he saw the hero flying towards him until Hatbot smashing it’s robotic fist into the heroes face, sending him flying the other way and drawing Cambots aim onto him. Vaskur paused for a moment going back to his work. 

“This is a limited time offer.” Black Hat continued, appearing at Vaskurs side as if nothing had happened, a hand on the humans shoulder. “Order now- or regret it forever!”

On cue, Vaskur made the contact information appear on the screen, letting Cambot get one last look at the fighting before cutting the feed. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the doors slam shut with steel barriers as the security system was turned on. “We should go home, sir.” he noted. 

Black Hat shrugged, his claws breaking through his gloves as he tore a hole in space itself. 

“After you, Doctor~”

 

Vaskur sat back, scrolling through the comments on their latest video. So far, most of them had less to do with the product and more to do with the fact Vaskur had been shown working with his old boss once again. Annoyingly, people kept referring to him Slug. He’d need to correct that at some point. 

A hand was placed on his shoulder. 

“Merry Christmas.” Vaskur said without looking up. 

“Happy Hanukkah.” Flug responded. “And welcome home.”

**Author's Note:**

> I had this idea at 3 am while I was falling asleep and I just had to write it


End file.
